Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Spencers Grove, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Spencers Grove and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Spencers Grove
- Astronomy & Satellites ...
- Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
- To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for Spencers Grove:
- 42.284095, -91.869355
- Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Spencers Grove
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Benton County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Benton County
- Since Spencers Grove is near Buchanan County and also Linn County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Buchanan County
- eBird sighting report for Linn County
- Waymarking ...
- Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
- Waymark.com
Curious and Interesting Names Near Spencers Grove ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
- Alice
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast) - Center Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Center Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Center Point is located in Linn County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,560 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Center Point <2>
- Doris
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north) - Eden
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest) - Gatesville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gatesville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gatesville
- Gatesville is located in Buchanan County
- Independence
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Independence
- Independence is located in Buchanan County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 6,203 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Independence <2>
- Shady Grove
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shady Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Grove
- Shady Grove is located in Buchanan County
- Toddville
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Toddville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Toddville
- Toddville is located in Linn County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Toddville <2>
- Vista
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
How Far From Spencers Grove to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Spencers Grove to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Spencers Grove and extending to:
- Vinton, which is the Seat of Benton County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<3> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Spencers Grove to Vinton, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 101 miles [162.5 km] to the west southwest (WSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take three full days and walking would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 810 miles [1,303.6 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,313 miles [10,159.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,061 miles [11,363.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,954 miles [7,972.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Spencers Grove. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Spencers Grove) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Spencers Grove. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.2841, Longitude: -91.8694 |
| <4> | While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day. |
| <5> | The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Spencers Grove to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 317.297 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.657 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.594 degrees. |